by Angela Brosnan
On Oct. 6, Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solís, announced a $2 million grant to Nicaragua to implement a Better Work program. The Better Work program will begin January. It will create more available information to the public about global companies that operate in Nicaragua such as Gap Inc., Columbia Sportswear, and Target Corp.
The implementers of the program, the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), will work with the country’s Ministry of Labor to monitor conditions in apparel factories.
They will make the records available to the public to promote transparency and assist suppliers in complying with labor standards. This will help protect worker’s rights. Company leaders and the Presidential Delegate for Investment in Nicaragua, General Álvaro Baltodano, attended a briefing at the Department of Labor with Solís, where all parties expressed optimism for the program.
The Heritage Foundation and Wall Street Journal rank Nicaragua 19th out of 29 South and Central American and Caribbean countries in terms of labor conditions. “Better Work is a highly successful strategy that was first developed in Cambodia ten years ago.” Solís said. “Its elements are worth replicating in other countries as a means of protecting workers’ rights while promoting development.” She mentioned the success of Better Work in Haiti, Cambodia and Jordan.
Though offered to several countries in the region including El Salvador, Nicaragua was the only country to accept the grant from the United States. Solís explained that the cooperation between companies, government and the public in the country made it possible for Nicaragua to accept the grant and the U.S. terms.
Solís mentioned her personal interest in Nicaragua’s prosperity, explaining it was the place of her mother’s birth and upbringing. Juana Sequeira raised Solís after she migrated to the United States in the 1950s and married Mexican-American factory worker Raúl Solís.
During the conference, Secretary Solís gave details of her trip last July to Nicaragua, and expressed her hope that the program will aid child-laborers both in the fields and in factories.
“With Better Work, factory workers will not have to toil long hours creating items they cannot afford. The people making the products will finally be able to buy them,” Solís explained. “This will give Nicaragua’s labor force an extra incentive.”
Baltodano expressed the hope of many that the program will halt migration to the United States of Nicaraguans seeking better labor conditions. He said the program would help with company credibility and consumer confidence issues. Solís called the program a “win-win” for both nations. Hispanic Link.
